South Florida's royal wedding: Predictions for LeBron James' big day

Local event planners, tastemakers speculate on the cake, dress and more.

January 6, 2012|By Doreen Christensen, Sun Sentinel

After news broke that Miami Heat superstar LeBron James proposed to his high school sweetie Savannah Brinson at a South Beach nightclub on New Year's Eve, we're seeing a star-studded wedding in South Florida's future.

Yeah, England's got princes and princesses, but, we've got a king with game and plenty of street cred, too.

It's fun to speculate on the spectacle we might see in nuptial celebrations. So we asked a few South Florida event planners and tastemakers about what might please the court of "King James" and his soon-to-be queen on their big day.

The ring: Every fairytale wedding begins with the ring and James, 27, delivered, presenting a pear-shaped diamond stunner to Brinson, 25, on bended knee in front of family and friends. "From the pictures, the ring looks to be between four and five carats," said Patrick Daoud, owner of Daoud's Fine Jewelry in Fort Lauderdale. "It could have cost as much as $300,000." Daoud, a fourth-generation jeweler who's been in business in South Florida for 116 years, said the setting is classic and timeless. "Now that she's got her ring, hopefully he'll get his at the end of this season," said the longtime Heat fan and season-ticket holder.

The date: Our guesstimate is mid-August or September. The NBA season got off to a late start because of the lockout. If LeBron and the Heat take it into the playoffs, the last possible game would be June 24, according to the NBA schedule. In July, James and Team USA head to London to compete in the 2012 Summer Olympics. Those games end in mid-August. Heat training camp starts about Oct. 1. That leaves a small window near the end of June and then openings from mid-August through the end of September.

The dress: What and who will Brinson wear? "I'd love to put her in off-white feathers and ruffles with touches of gold to compliment her skin tone," said Zola Keller, who sells custom-made couture bridal gowns on Las Olas Boulevard in Fort Lauderdale. Keller said the dress she has in mind is sexy but elegant and runs about $5,000. "It's traditional with a modern twist. I'd do pear-shape Swarovski crystals on the bodice to pick up on the gorgeous, pear-shaped rock on her finger."

Ceremony and reception: The happy couple hail from Ohio, so the big question is where they will tie the knot. "I think they'll get married here," said Nick D'Annunzio, principal at the Tara, Ink. public relations firm. "I think it will be Miami's version of the royal wedding because he's King James. He made Miami his home, and what better backdrop for a royal wedding than South Florida?"

The firm, which has offices in Miami Beach, New York and Los Angles, has created tony events for Jennifer Lopez, Paula Abdul and Louis Vuitton. "It has to be grand and big and over the top. They have friends from all over the country.

"LeBron likes everything over the top and indulgent," D'Annunzio said, and he'll spend big. "Soup to nuts, at least a million dollars, probably more." He envisions the reception "in a private home on Star or Fisher Island. It's all going to be about fun. I can only imagine who is going to get up and sing and perform at their wedding — Jamie Foxx, P. Diddy, Pitbull, Kanye West, Beyonce, Jay-Z."

Music: Besides the who's who of hip-hop royalty, Ross Bielejeski of Rock With U Entertainment in Dania Beach imagines tight beats entertaining the crowd. Bielejeski, who has emceed the Winterfest Boat Parade and charity events for Heat guard Dwyane Wade, said spins at the reception would likely be high energy yet elegant. "It would have the energy and flow of a club."

Rock With U's DJs have spinned at Club Liv at the Fontainebleau on Miami Beach for LeBron. "He likes old-school to new-school hip-hop like Tupac, Notorious B.I.G., Run DMC to Lil Wayne, Drake and Pitbull, Flo Rida." In the clubs LeBron is "jammin' with his boys and bobbin' his head to the beat and enjoying the music. He really enjoys music. If there's a beat, it gets his pulse going and he's dancin' to it."

The cake: "If I did the cake, it would be a very tall cake — 6 feet at least — to begin with, because he is a very tall person," said Ana Paz, of Ana Paz Cakes in Doral. James is 6 feet, 8 inches tall.

"The cake needs to be taller than him to stand out in the photos. The top would be full of embroidery, encrusted with Swarovski crystals. It would have lots of bling-bling, because diamonds are a very important part of these players' lives — their championship rings signify winning." Paz referred to a recent creation from her Miami bake shop that was 9-feet tall and cost a whopping $27,000. "I would love to do a cake just like that for LeBron and Savannah. It would be amazing."